Man with a Pan was originally set up as 6 week courses where men prepare, cook and eat together as a group under the direction of a tutor. Nutrition has been absolutely key to the initiative, where they learn the importance of a good diet and our tutors also give advice about budgeting. The recipes are for bigger portions so that there is enough to freeze for a later date.

In addition to this, we have been running twice-weekly Man with a Pan Clubs which have a similar format to the courses. We also team up with St Mary’s University and they deliver some Man with a Pan courses and a monthly club for us, whereby participants receive a 40-minute interactive nutrition talk, covering topics including micro and macro nutrients, salt, food labels, and food hygiene amongst others.

“A great group of silly old fools!”

In the last year alone we’ve worked with around 300 men and we’ve made a huge difference to their lives. One of our regular participants said, “It’s difficult to say which bit is the best part of the club. Mary (pictured above with participant Mark), who takes the club, is absolutely brilliant. How she puts up with us is amazing. We produce some very lovely food and the whole time is great fun. I’m reluctant to recommend it to anyone else because I feel we are a great group of silly old fools!”

The social aspect of the courses is as important as the cooking. We want men to form friendships and hopefully take part in some of our other men’s activities together, such as walking football or pub lunches.

We are grateful for the funding from charitable trusts, such as the City Bridge Trust and Hampton Fuel Allotment Charity, and we are also partly commissioned by the local authority.